Exile Princes - FAQ Thread

[Jubal]

For any questions people want to ask, now the game is released Click on each subtopic to see the relevant FAQs.

Basics and controls

Q: How do I change the volume?
A: Press M to toggle between a range of volume levels.

Q: What are the hotkeys?
A: It depends on which screen you're on. M for volume toggle is universal, and H always repeats the hotkeys list. If you're in a menu, Esc leaves the menu.

• On the map: WASD or arrow keys to move, and X to search. C key to save, and ESC to return to the menu. Q key to check your quests, R for your army, Z for your stats, and F for faction information.
• In cities: W to go to the Castle, T for the Tavern, A to hire troops, X to search city, S for a rumour and D to leave, you can also use Z to check your stats, Q to list quests, and R for your army readout.
• On a decision screen: click Yes or press Enter, or No or press Backspace to choose. Z to list stats and Q to list quests.
• In battle: W to fight a round of combat, A to switch attacker, D to switch defender, S for attack ability and F for defence ability. Z to retreat.

Gameplay/Early Game

Q: How do I spend adventuring points?
A: You'll get offered upgrade possibilities as end-of-week events: you can't just spend the points as soon as you get them. They're not super frequent, not least because the jumps are quite large (so e.g. +1 attack is actually a pretty large bonus). Adventuring Points can also unlock random event opportunities to interact with companion characters if you have any, those also turn up as random end of week events.

Q: How do I train troops?
A: Training troops requires them gaining XP: they usually gain this by being in the attack or defence slot during a combat round, though other events and character abilities can help. If they have enough XP and at least one upgrade option then you'll get random events at ends of weeks asking about upgrading them. If they have multiple upgrades possible, the offered upgrade will be random: you might want to reject an upgrade if you need a different specific endpoint. You can check what a unit's upgrade options are in the army menu.

Q: Which troops do I need to train for a specific quest?
A: If a city has asked you to train units, they will always be trainable from that city's citizens. Citizens develop into a tier two "guard" unit, one of the upgrades from that unit will be what the city requests from you in a standard training quest.

Q: I didn't find a fugitive murderer despite checking all the fields in the area?
A: Try again! A tile on the map of The Exile Princes represents an area more than large enough to fit a city into - you won't necessarily find any specific thing in an area the first time you look there. Think of each search as rolling the dice on looking, you may need to leave & return to have another go later if a fugitive is staying in hiding successfully.

Q: Why do I keep getting ambushed?
A: You generally only get ambushed in forest terrain. If you use Search Area it usually reveals ambushes in adjacent squares, so if you have to go through a forest but want to avoid combats then you can go slowly & carefully by searching repeatedly.

Mid to late game

Q: How can I gain control of cities?
A: There are three ways. A city can be captured by siege, you can win an election, or a city will join your side if you have high relations with them. Sieges are moderately tough battles, varying according to the city's wealth, faction, leader traits, and amenities. Elections rely on your knowledge of the city: listen for rumours to work out what people want. Cities need a very high relationship to join your side without an election or siege, but the required relationship can be lowered significantly if members of your house have friendly relations with the city's current ruler (look for events at feasts to accomplish this).

Achievement Hunting

Q: How do I get the no combat achievement?
A: Fighting any round of combat will remove the achievement trigger, so you don't just need to not attack, you need to avoid all combat. This is possible by focusing on escort and delivery quests, and on the election and city champion victory paths. Avoid forested areas to reduce the chance of ambushes.

Meta questions

Q: Where can I get the game?
A: Currently on Steam! There may also be a future release on Itch.

[The Seamstress]

I have finally won some cities, but don't fully understand how the taxes & expenditures thing works: I get told that cities are in debt but I don't really know how to fix or avoid that?

[Jubal]

I have finally won some cities, but don't fully understand how the taxes & expenditures thing works: I get told that cities are in debt but I don't really know how to fix or avoid that?

In your castle, holding court is the key mechanic here: you can do it every two weeks, and you'll get various opportunities like raising/lowering taxes and army size plans. You should try and hold court often if you want to keep good hold of a city.

For a temporary but large reduction in expenditures you can also disband or remove some of the troops the city has in its defending force, inspecting the city's army can also be done via going to your castle.

[The Seamstress]

I see, thank you!

[The Seamstress]

I acquired a new weapon in some city tunnels and it says "Bonus XP/gold vs. wibulnibs" - does that mean I get more XP and money when fighting wibulnibs?

And, uhm, can I dump a boyfriend? Lol. He disapproves of all my court rulings in favour of women & non-humans and is slowly but surely starting to get on my nerves with that behaviour.

[Jubal]

I acquired a new weapon in some city tunnels and it says "Bonus XP/gold vs. wibulnibs" - does that mean I get more XP and money when fighting wibulnibs?

Yep!

And, uhm, can I dump a boyfriend? Lol. He disapproves of all my court rulings in favour of women & non-humans and is slowly but surely starting to get on my nerves with that behaviour.

As long as you haven't declared true love and "locked" the relationship in place, you will occasionally get chances to end a relationship - and you should get those more if you annoy the character enough. You should also be able to end a relationship simply by firing the character from your party entirely.

[The Seamstress]

Thanks! That's my money problems sorted. And the berating-boyfriend problem too, hopefully...

Another question: How exactly do my companions gain ATT, DEF etc. skills? Sometimes I walk around and it says "XY has gained a +1 bonus to whatever" and it seems rather random? Do they have to participate in fights as attack/defense unit to level up their skills or does it just happen as part of them travelling with me?

[The Seamstress]

How can I buy a ship? I remember being offered one when I played the demo, but no such luck in the current game. Do I have to do anything or does that happen randomly?

[Jubal]

To buy a ship, you need to be in a city that borders the relevant water, and Search City: if you get a chance to decide which district to go to, you'll only get the event if you're in the district with the port. Beyond that it's random but shouldn't be an uncommon chance.

EDIT: also companions and skills, didn't notice that one: they just get a bonus of some kind, randomly selected, for every certain amount of XP that they get - which they get as usual so by fights, or by anything else that would normally give XP.

[The Seamstress]

Thank you!